the secret keeper and the key
by whisperbird
Summary: Hook has been searching for the thing that holds the secrets of neverland, a strange pirate woman shows up on his ship and tells she knows where it is. brand new lost boys and even twin lost girls
1. Chapter 1

Tap, tap, tap. The well dressed man slumped over his desk seemed to shrink with each tap. Tap, tap, tap. Blue eyes snapped open to view his surroundings through a curtain of long wavy black hair. Tap, tap, tap. He got up, strode across the carpeted floor and wrenched open the door. The portly man behind it had been about to tap again but now looked thouroughly startled to find the door open before him.

"Hullo Cap'n!" he said cheerfully. But captain James Hook was not in a cheerful mood.

"This had better be good Smee," he said through clenched teeth.

"Right," said Smee, licking his lips. "Well, the thing is the men and I, ever vigilant on watch of course—"

"Spit it out!" hissed the captain, and Smee flinched.

"We er, found something, no someone, clinging to a piece of wood halfway submerged in the water."

"What was?"

"What was what, sir?"

"What was halfway submerged in the water!"

"The person o' course."

"Top half or bottom half submerged?"

"Top half, sir."

Hook put a hand up to pinch the bridge of his nose as he did when he was impatient.

"It's probably just one of those blasted merfolk. Don't tell me one of my men got tempted into diving after it."

"No sir. It's an ordinary woman sir."

"A woman?"

"Dressed as a man sir."

"What's that to the point just take me to her!" he stepped out of his cabin and shut the door.

"Very good sir she's up on deck."

The woman was indeed wearing sopping wet men's clothing. Her feet were bare, her hair bedraggled, and her coffee colored skin gleamed with drops of water. She was on the large side, with curves that would draw the eye of any man. Even if that man were Captain James Hook.

His icy blue stare swepped up and down, appraising her. She might have been pretty, except pirates do not think things are pretty.

"Smee!" barked the captain, never taking his eyes of the strange woman. "Find this woman some dry clothes."

"But captain, we've only got men's things—"

"Use your eyes Smee, she's already wearing men's things! It wouldn't matter even if she weren't! Just do it!" he fixed Smee with a reproachful look, then turned back to the woman. Smee scuttled off to do as he was bid.

"Do you have a name?" the captain demanded.

"Zinfandel." Hook raised an eyebrow. "Had that name ever since I started drinking at age eleven. Never had another one."

_Woman after my own, er, heart, _the captain thought. "Where did you come from then?"

"I was crewed to the pirate ship, _infant_. Which lately met its end in a storm. I won't say anything about my life before then so don't ask." She fixed him with a stern look, but Hook chuckled, causing Smee, who was returning with clothes to peer at him cautiously. The captain mostly only chucked when he was about to gut someone.

"Well, we all have something to hide don't we? Smee stop standing there like an idiot!" he barked without pause. "Give Zinfandel her clothes and show her to my cabin so she can change."

"Zinfandel? And who might—"

"Smee." Hook looked to the heavens and back at his dim crew member. "Do you see any other women on board this ship?"

"No Cap'n. Good thing too. Its bad luck to have even one on board a ship."

"Luck has nothing to do with it Smee! Though one might say you got unlucky when they were passing out brains."

"What?"

Hook was careful to put iron control back into his voice. "Just, do as I told you Smee."

"Yes sir, cap'n sir." Smee mopped his brow. "Come right this way m'lady."

Hook watched them go, smiling a bit when he heard Zinfandel say,

"There'll be none of this 'my lady' business. I'm a pirate same as you though I'm not part of this crew."


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: boy I hope I spelled that right. Ahem. I own nothing. Unless of course a reader comes across a character they don't recognize from the original book/play. In which case, that person is mine, mine, mine.

Dinner, a much fussier event that night than it would have been on others, took place in Hook's cabin. Hook himself sat at the head of the table, really his desk just cleared off, deep in thought with his hands clasped in front of him. He didn't even blink until, for the second time that day there was a tapping at the door. He looked up as Zinfandel entered the room.

"Ah, miss Zinfandel," said Hook, getting to his feet and holding out her chair like a gentleman. "I believe formalities must be observed. My name is Captain James Hook and the ship you are currently on is the—"

"Jolly Roger." Put in Zinfandel. "Yes, I know all about this ship, and yourself in fact. I have been looking for you." Hook seemed mildly taken aback.

"Have you indeed," he asked. "Well then you must have been lucky in your search to find yourself pulled from the sea by my men. May I inquire as to why you were looking for me?"

"It's quite simple really." Zinfandel stated matter-of-factly. "I have found what you are looking for; the Heart of Neverland."

This statement was met with a stunned silence. For a brief moment Hook looked eager, but then a shadow crossed his face and he was unreadable once more.

"Are you quite certain? The Heart is, by all accounts, difficult to recognize."

"I thought of that." Zinfandel waved a hand impatiently as though to sweep away his doubts. "But I'm sure of it. It looks just like the stories said it would; an unremarkable piece of jewelry, crystal sphere, silver setting, silver chain. But when I touched it my fingers came away covered in silver dust; fairy dust. More than that I could feel them, trapped inside the crystal just where I couldn't know them, all the secrets ever kept in Neverland." For a long moment she stared in front of her at something only she could see, while Hook himself stared at her.

Coming out of her thoughts at last, Zinfandel turned her attention to her food. Hook stared a second longer before snapping:

"Well?"

She looked up, mouth still full of food to meet his impatient expression.

"Well what?"

"The Heart!" Hook burst out. "Where is it? Is it with you now?" his eyes glittered with suppressed eagerness.

"First of all, no, it's not here, but I have reason to believe it will get here soon. I can understand your impatience but let me put your mind at ease. The reason I did not attempt to bring it here was that I knew it would not bring me. I gave the Heart to my daughter instead. I knew it would bring her." Correctly interpreting Hook's look she added, "Yes Hook, I have a daughter. Twin daughters, in fact, both thirteen, and both unaware that I am their mother."

Hook looked at her as though trying to read her mind through her stern look and past her skull. He seemed to get the message that this was a "family" matter and did not press her to tell him more.

For the rest of dinner neither diner said anything, but concentrated on the food and their own thoughts instead. It was not until the dishes had been cleared and the table wiped by crewmembers that Hook brought up the subject of the heart again.

"What are their names?" Zinfandel frowned in confusion so Hook elaborated. "Your daughters. What are their names and what do they look like?" seeing she was about to reply angrily he hastily added, "It is important that I know so we can recognize them when they arrive with the Heart."

"Ah, yes. I see. But first of all they must never again be referred to as my daughters." She waited until Hook nodded before continuing. "Their names are Ramona and Ginevra, but they've only ever answered to Rum and Gin. They have practically identical faces, the same curly black hair going down to their shoulder blades, and skin that looks like it never leaves the sun. Though it's lighter than mine. The twin's father was white." Zinfandel watched Hook's face as she said this but he gave no reaction. "They're tall for thirteen," She went on. "And wearing boy's clothes. It will be Rum who has the Heart.

Hook sighed. "And how do you suppose we tell them apart once we find them? We will need to in order to get the Heart from Rum."

"Simple, Captain, all you do is bring them to me. I know my daughters. Rum has a fierceness about her and is quite good at persuading Gin to do things they shouldn't. Gin is softer than her sister and more sensible, but she generally does what Rum thinks is the right thing to do."

"You gave the Heart of Neverland to the twin with the strongest will? You should have given it to the soft one! She might have given it to us easily, but what if her sister gets it into her head not to hand over the Heart? The Heart of Neverland can not be taken by force!"

"Calm down Hook, you aren't thinking right. Gin listens to Rum no matter what and Rum won't ever back down if her sister is involved. It will be very easy to break Rum alone. Besides," she looked Hook straight in the eye to make sure he was listening. "If the Heart does not bring them here immediately Rum is less likely to lose it or let it go. Now, I suggest you put your men on patrol of the island straight away. Station them on the shore if possible. That way even if the Heart doesn't drop the twins in their laps, they will still see them flying in."

"You will kindly remember," Hook said with a smile that fell short of his cold eyes, "That I am the Captain on this ship Madam Zinfandel, and I will not be ordered to do anything by you. Is that clear?" the smile was gone completely now as he got to his feet and opened the cabin door. He held it there as Zinfandel stood up from the table slowly and approached him, moving her hips as she walked. She stopped inches away from his face and stared up into his icy blue eyes.

"Perfectly clear, Captain."

Then she was through the door, leaving him deep in thought.


End file.
